plies any real goodness, then the finner has fomething to recommend himself, which is of real worth, of which he has reafon to boaft, and muft be acceptable to God; and therefore has no need of the merits of Chrift and free grace in order to be justified. They therefore contend that to affert that a finner muft exercise any holiness previous to his juftification, and in order to it, and that faith is a holy act, is entirely to fubvert the gofpel, and lays a foundation for boafting, and flatters the pride of man. Of these there have been, and now are, not a few in all parts of the proteftant world.

What has been faid on this subject ferves to show how unreafonable and contrary to the truth this notion is, and the evil tendency of it. But it may be useful and of importance to review fome things which have been mentioned in the preceding difcourfe, by which the error and abfurdity of this opinion will be abundantly expofed and confuted.

1. The finner is under the curfe of the holy, righteous and good law of God, which pronounces him to be a hateful, accurfed creature, deferving to lie under the divine displeasure and wrath forever. Every tranf greffor of this law is under this curfe and in this state, whatever holy obedience he had performed, and how long foever he had continued perfectly holy before his fin. His tranfgreffion, even one inftance of it, totally obliterates and annihilates his preceding holiness, fo that it cannot have the least influence to prevent the curfe coming upon him, or alleviate it in any degree; but he is as odious and guilty, and as much the object of God's displeasure for his tranfgreffion, as if his previous holinefs never had existence, which cannot be reckoned in his favour in any respect or degree, without_counteracting the law of God, and fetting it afide in favour of the finner, who by it is curfed. And it is the fame with regard to any future holiness and obedience. If the finner repent and turn to obedience, though ever fo perfect and long continued, this would not in the leaft degree atone for the fin of which he had been guilty, or

remove the curfe which the law has fixed upon him for his fin; and therefore could not be more acceptable to God than if he had not obeyed, or than his obedience before he finned, and cannot be the reafon and ground of his receiving any favour from God, as after obedience is as much obliterated and rendered of no avail to recommend to any favour, by his fin, as his obedience before he finned, it being equally contrary to the law, which pronounces him accurfed, to regard and accept or fhow any favour for his after obedience, as for the former, and it cannot be done without vacating and fetting it afide, as not worthy of regard.

or any

This is the plain law of God, which curfes every one who continueth not to obey it in all things which it requires, and holds him under this curfe, notwithstanding all the obedience he had paid to it before he finned, obedience after that. The law affords no remedy or help, or grants any thing better than what is contained in the curfe. This is the law of God. It is his voice to all his creatures who are moral agents. It is the language of his heart, which he will never counteract or contradict, in words or conduct. He views the finner in the light in which his law fets him, and will treat him accordingly fo long as he remains under the curfe of it, and is not delivered from it in a way which is perfectly confiftent with it, and in which as much regard is paid to it, as if the finner remained under the curfe of it forever.

Therefore, whatever repentance and approbation of the law which curfes him, and love to God, the finner exercifes before he is delivered from the curfe by actually coming to Chrift and believing on him, does not in any degree remove his guilt, or render him lefs deferving of the curfe, and cannot recommend him to the leaft favour; but he is in the fight of God as much accurfed and the object of his difpleafure, and in this fenfe as truly ungodly, as he was before, and as if he lrad no fuch exercifes of love and repentance, as they cannot be reckoned in his favour, fo as in the leaft to remove the

curfe.

curfe. And whatever repentance, and love to God and his law, or holinefs, is neceffary in order to come to Christ, and is exercised in coming to him and believing on him, this cannot, in itself confidered, recommend the finner to favour, or render him lefs unworthy or lefs accurfed; but as by this the finner lays hold of Chrift, and is united to him, he comes within the reach of his merit and worthiness, so as by him who has been made a curfe he may confiftent with the law be delivered from the curfe of it, and obtain all the favour which he wants. And being thus by Chrift delivered from the curfe of the law, and pardoned and juftified by virtue of his atonement and righteoufnefs, his perfon and his holy exercises of faith and love become acceptable to God through Jefus Chrift, to whom he is united. God may now be juft, and maintain and honour his righteous law, and the juftifier of him who believeth in Jefus, he being made accepted in his beloved Son, in whom he is well pleased.*

The

This ferves to fix the true and plain meaning of the Apostle's words, [Rom. iv. 4, 5.] "Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt: but to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted to him for righteoufnefs." By him that worketh is meant, him who by his works of obedience recommends himself to favour, and the reward of eternal life, and in this fenfe earns the reward by the price of his obedience, which no creature can do, except thofe who are perfectly innocent and holy, as has been obferved in explaining the law of works. He who worketh not is the finner, who neither has nor can have any works to recommend to the leaft favour; who is convinced of this, and makes no attempt to do any thing in this view and to this end; who feels that he is juftly accurfed, and under the difpleasure of God, and deferves nothing better than everlafting deftruction, being an ungodly rebel againft God, and wholly unrighteous. As fuch he looks to Chrift, and believeth on him, and cordially receives him and trufts in him for righteoufnefs, who pardons and justifieth fuch unrighteous, ungodly, infinitely guilty, hell-deferving finners as he feels and confeffes himself to be.

They who hold the tenet to which the inference under confideration is oppofed, lay much stress upon the word ungodly in this paffage, as if it denoted a finner altogether deftitute of the leaft friendly dif pofition towards God and Chrift, being an impenitent enemy to God. But though fuch are often meant in the fcripture by the un

godly,

The reafon of all this-why the finner's holiness be fore or after he has once finned cannot be acceptable and reckoned in his favour, or in any degree remove the curfe of the law, and whatever holiness he may exercife previous to his union to Chrift, and is neceffary in order to his coming to Chrift, and actually forming this vital union to him, cannot render him acceptable to God, or lefs unworthy and accurfed, and why he is totally unacceptable, as ungodly and curfed by God, till he is actually united to Chrift, and can be accepted only in the worthiness of this beloved Son of God-the reafon of this is plain and easy to be seen.

The tranfgreffion of the law of God in the leaft single inftance is rebellion against a Being infinitely great, powerful, wife, juft and good, who has abfolute and unlimited right and authority to command and give law to his creatures; they are therefore under infinite obligation to perfect obedience; and confequently a violation of this obligation can be no less than an infinite crime, or an infinite moral evil. Befides, he who' rebels against God, has a difpofition and will to dethrone him, and put an end to his law, authority and moral government, and introduce infinite confufion and mifery through the whole univerfe; and his conduct tends to

this,

godly, yet it does not follow that precisely this idea is always to be denoted by this word. It has been fhewn in what fenfe every unpardoned, unjuftified finner is properly denominated ungodly, and this appears to be the fenfe in which the Apoftle uses it, from the connection and context. And understanding it as they do, makes the Apostle to fay that a finner, with a hard, impenitent heart, full of enmity to God and to Chrift, and the way of falvation by him, and juftification by free grace, may and does believe on Chrift, receive and trust in him for juftification and falvation, which he at the fame time abhors with his whole heart! This is to make him assert, with themselves, that which is most abfurd and abfolutely impoffible. It is therefore moft certain the Apostle did not use this word here in the fenfe which they put upon it, but in a fenfe perfectly agreeable to the fubject of which he treats, and the point he is proving, which is naturally and eafily understood by the unprejudiced and difcerning; being confiftent with himself, with other fcripture, and with the cleareft reafon.

this, and would actually effect it were it poffible, and were it not counteracted and prevented. Every fin therefore must be an infinite evil, in the nature and tendency of it. There is no moral truth more demonftrably clear and certain than this; and this is a truth on which many other moral truths depend, which relate to the law of God and his moral government, as we fhall fee.*

Sin being thus an infinite moral evil, no temporary fufferings of the finner, or of any mere creature, can make the leaft degree of atonement for it, fo as in any measure to alleviate or deliver him from the curfe of the law. And it is equally certain that no holiness of a mere creature can avail to recommend him who has once finned to the leaft favour. Though the finner had been perfectly obedient and holy a thousand years before he finned, this is but a finite moral good, and therefore the infinite moral evil of which he has been guilty infinitely overbalances his finite holiness, fo that it weighs nothing in the oppofite fcale, and does no inore to lighten or take off the curfe, than if it never had existence. And this is equally true of any obedience which the finner fhould perform after he had once finned, as has already been obferved: it has no tendency to take off the curfe, and cannot recommend him to any favour, or be the leaft ground or reafon of his being confidered and treated any better or otherwise than as one who is juftly curfed, unworthy of any favour, and deferving all the evils of the curfe. And therefore it would be unreasonable, and acting contrary to the law, to confider and treat him otherwise, or fhew him any favour out of refpect to his obedience.

* The penalty threatened in the law of God to every tranfgreffion, which is endless punishment, has its foundation on the infinite evil of fin, and is a demonftration that it is an evil of fuch magnitude : for, if fin were not infinitely criminal, it would not deferve an infinite punishment, nor would it be threatened. Chrift explains the meaning of the curfe or penalty of the law, when he fays, "Depart ye curfed into everlafting fire." They who deny the infinite evil of fin, cannot vindicate or understand the divine law, or the gofpel, which is founded upon it.

M m

Thus